My friend Charlie Lockwood has a fusion band called Atlas Maior which has just today released a new album . It was all recorded live, world music, jazz fusion kind of stuff, excellent, in a word. If you're in Austin tonight you can go to the cd release party, but if not you should go ahead and download this album . Now. By day Charlie is Operations & Development Director for Texas Folklife . In Atlas Maior he plays oud. Which is an understatement, given his skill on it. Here is how they describe the recording of the album: "During a two-month recording process at Bell Tree Recording Studio in Austin, TX during Summer 2013, Atlas Maior experimented with a variety of instrumental and sonic arrangements, exploring different methods of improvisation and cosmologies of sound. Many of these exercises explored themes of symmetries in sound through different instrumental arrangements. The result of these sessions is Palindrome, Atlas Maior's 2014 two-disc album comprise...
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I'm working on a project listening to some archival recordings of great Texas fiddlers and up comes great Texas fiddler Louis Franklin. I felt like it would be good to have some of him up here, in this old footage. Franklin was from Windom, Texas, and his uncle Major Franklin was also a well known fiddler. Bio here . (And Louis' son Larry Franklin is a massively accomplished Nashville fiddler nowadays). Louis Franklin-Fiddle. Bill Butler-Guitar. Zipp Durrett-Guitar
It’s Raining Rage in Ayotzinapa
This is via El Enemigo Común It’s Raining Rage in Ayotzinapa "The pain, horror and rage over the crimes committed against Ayotzinapa students last September 26, in Iguala, Guerrero, have fostered national and international condemnation of criminal governments that plan to close all teacher-training schools — and do away with anybody they see as an obstacle to their plans. On October 8, thousands of demonstrators took up the demands of the family and friends of the students killed and disappeared. In the streets of dozens of cities in Mexico and the world, the same chants could be heard: “You took them off alive, we want them back alive.” and “We want justice and we want it now.” In Chiapas, Zapatistas marched in silence the same day and called for international protests. In Mexico City, at least 20,000 people, maybe more, marched from the Angel of Independence to the Zocalo with banners and signs that read, “It’s Raining Rage in Ayotzinapa,” “Present the students alive,” “Aguirre...
No Bankers Left Behind
some listening to counter Geithner's testimony ----Ry Cooder's perfect "No Banker Left Behind." It sounds like an Uncle Dave song, I think. I first heard it when he played it at the Arhoolie 40th anniversary concert a few years ago. On this one the music is a bit rough, but the spirit is all there. "On the brink of bankruptcy/my life is pitiful, you'll agree"
Some of what I was doing during my time in Texas last week, playing with the legendary Lorenzo Martinez and also with amazingly prolific and talented Lupe Acuña . These were filmed by Lupe, who singlehandedly documents virtually everything going on in conjunto music from the insignificant (me) to the most important events each week. All of his 1000+ videos are worth watching . (if you click on the titles you will be taken to youtube, better viewing there)